The narrative begins with a young Haitian revolutionary, whose name is not mentioned, reflecting on his girlfriend. He is aboard a small boat headed for Miami, Florida, fleeing into exile due to being pursued by the Haitian government. These details are revealed by the young woman, who serves as the story's second narrator. While her lover has left the country, she remains in Haiti with her parents. The couple communicates their experiences and emotions through a series of letters. Although they cannot send these letters, writing them helps to ease their loneliness during their separation. When they finally reunite, it will feel as though they were never apart.

In Haiti, the young man was a university student involved in a youth federation that protested against the dictator and advocated for a new government. He fled the country when the secret police, known as the Tonton Macoutes, targeted his group. Other members were killed by the army, and additional students were shot while protesting for the return of their friends' bodies. One woman, Madam Roger, a neighbor to the young woman's family, returned with only her son's head.

The young man describes the hardships faced on the ship: seasickness, fluctuating temperatures, lack of privacy, and food scarcity. He dreams of dying and reaching heaven, only to find it's at the ocean's depths. The young woman also appears in this dream, but her father continues to keep them apart. Her father disapproves of their relationship, believing the young man is not suitable for his daughter. Despite the young man's departure, the father fears that his daughter's ties to the revolutionaries could endanger their safety. One night, soldiers beat Madam Roger to force her to reveal her son's associates. The young woman and her mother think the father should help Madam Roger, but he knows he is powerless to assist his neighbor and cannot even ensure his family's safety. He longs to move to Ville Rose, which he considers more "civilized" compared to the crowded and impoverished Port-au-Prince.

On the ship, a young teenager named Celianne gives birth to a stillborn baby. The passengers gossip, claiming her parents disowned her for having an affair, but the reality is far worse. One night, the secret police invaded her home, forcing her brother, a revolutionary, to have intercourse with their mother. The soldiers then raped Celianne and arrested her brother. She disfigured her face with a razor to conceal her identity, ultimately escaping on the boat. As the vessel begins to leak, passengers are compelled to discard their possessions overboard, but Celianne refuses to part with her baby.

In Ville Rose, a young woman's family chooses to embrace honesty among themselves. She confesses her love for a young man to her father. Meanwhile, her mother reveals that the Tonton Macoutes had plans to arrest her due to her association with a youth federation member. Upon learning of this, her father bribes them with all his money, along with the family's house and land, to protect her. The young woman feels overwhelmed with gratitude toward her father. On the radio, she hears the news that her beloved has passed his university exams.

Aboard the ship, everything is jettisoned. Celianne throws her baby into the sea and then follows it herself. The young man is compelled to discard his notebook. Before doing so, he writes on the last page, capturing his final thoughts. He understands he is about to join the "children of the sea," those who have escaped oppression to exist in a realm beyond the earth and sky, far removed from violence. He realizes that...